Racing: Vet refutes Mr Sox injury claim

The Jockey Club attempted yesterday to put an end to speculation that Mr Sox, whose first-fence fall at Southwell last month resulted in the death of his rider, Richard Davis, was not fit to compete in the race due to a pelvic injury.

The coroner's inquest into Davis's death is continuing, but the Club, the ultimate authority in matters relating to safety, decided to issue a comment late yesterday afternoon after consulting with the vet who attended to Mr Sox at the Derbyshire yard of Laura Shally, who trains under permit.

Andrew Larnach, who had ridden Mr Sox in a schooling session on Easter Sunday, claimed in a newspaper interview last weekend that Shally had told him later that day that the gelding would not be able to run at Plumpton 24 hours later because he had a cracked pelvis. Mr Sox ran in two subsequent races before the tragic contest at Southwell.

Yesterday's Jockey Club statement read: "In the light of an allegation that Mr Sox had recently suffered from a cracked pelvis and was therefore unfit to run in the race at Southwell on 19 July in which Richard Davis died, the Jockey Club has asked the horse's veterinary surgeon, Robin Kernohan, of the Chine House Veterinary Group, to make a definitive statement. Mr Kernohan said today: 'I have attended the gelding regularly over the last six months and the horse has never shown any sign of a pelvic injury'.''

There was also a claim last weekend that Davis's departure to hospital was delayed as a result of Jockey Club regulations concerning the number of ambulances which must be present at a racecourse, but this too was fiercely refuted yesterday.

While unable to comment specifically on Davis's case until the inquest is complete, John Maxse, a Jockey Club spokesman, pointed out that its instructions do not require an ambulance to await a replacement before taking an injured jockey to hospital. "There is no instruction from us saying that there have to be two ambulances on course at all times," Maxse said. "There is an instruction that says racing can only proceed when there are two ambulances on course, but to suggest that our rules prevented the ambulance leaving the course is totally incorrect.

"What happens on the course is that the jockey is attended to by the medical officer and at that moment a decision is made as to whether he should go straight to hospital or whether an ambulance is brought in to transfer him. There have been several examples when a jockey has been rushed straight to hospital and racing has been delayed as a result.''

In addition to the inquest, which is expected to return its verdict towards the end of next month, the Jockey Club is conducting its own inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the death of Richard Davis. "The four people on that committee include Dr Michael Turner," Maxse said, "so if there are any medical lessons to be learned with regard to procedures they will be taken on board.''